fightingfantasyfandomcom-20200222-history
Demon
Demons are an array of unholy, magical entities that are foreign to the physical plane. - p.?? Their native plane of existence is usually the Pit - a depraved, nightmarish dimension adjacent to the Elemental Planes. - p.154/?? The Pit Demons are divided into three circles. In ascending order of importance, these three levels are designated Tertius, Secundus and Primus, with the ruling Snake and Night Demons occupying the highest circle, Primus. Most Demons seem to hail from these groups in the Pit, however, there are also pseudo-Demons, such as the Earth Demon, - p.70/?? which are not actual Demons, and are only referred to as such due to their magical and malevolent natures. The range of Demons hitherto encountered is incredibly diverse - some of them are elemental, such as Fire Demons, while others are associated with various substances, facts and features of the physical world, such as Moon Demons, Rock Demons, and the like. There are also diverse means of controlling and combating Demons - some are vulnerable only to magical weapons and spells, some to Holy means of attack, while others are only susceptible to their own black magicks. - p.17 Demons in the Pit perform various tasks in there, including torturing the souls of the damned, and engaging in schemes to conquer the Earthly Plane and overthrow the Gods of the Celestial Court. - 64-5 Rough Guide to the Pit, pp. 1-14 However, Demons are divided and will often scheme against each other, and sometimes fight wars against their fellows. Each realm of the Pit has factions of demons plotting against each other; for instance, the rival confederations of Lava Demons and Greater Fire Demons are constantly attacking each other. Being supernatural entities of great power, Demons are sometimes the object of religious worship, especially those occupying the higher ranks. This is especially true of the demigod Snake Demons, who in some cases are divinely revered by entire races. Most notably, the Caarth venerate Sith, - p.39/?? while the Lizard Men pay homage to Myurr and Ishtra. - p.194/??; - p.153/?? However, while the Snake Demons are undoubtedly powerful and intelligent, they remain in thrall to their exiled master, Death. It is Death that insinuates his own designs and desires into their minds and the Demons, wittingly or not, act upon his will. - p.153/?? Origins Speculation The origins of Demons are not entirely explained, however some inferences can be made based on the information available in Fighting Fantasy canon. Demons can manifest in many forms - the range of their physical shapes is limited only by what their powers will allow. - 38 However, they are known to choose physical forms that are consonant with their native forms and habitat found in the Pit. - 39 Why they possess these particular forms could possibly be explained. It is said that Death, foremost of the Dark Gods, stole a portion of the magical soil that Throff had discovered, using it to fashion his own creatures after the Lawful Gods had created theirs. - p.48/??, 49/??, 53/?? This might possibly explain the provenance of Demons and why much of them correspond to substances and elements already existing in the created world of Titan. Death may have acquired his inspiration for his creations from features of the world already formed by his divine peers. This is possibly further supported by the existence of demonic variants of animals, such as Demon Bats, Demon Steeds, and the like. - 210; - 5 Canon text also states that, during the first battle against the Dark Gods, the monstrosities among the ranks of Chaos bore grotesque parodies of other beings in a "cruel mockery of the creations of the lawful gods". - p.54-55/?? Another theory to explain the properties, though not the origins, of Demons is that the substance or element they correspond to is not just their original bodies, but is also the medium which they use to manifest themselves. Mirror Demons, for instance, apparently use mirrors to penetrate the barrier between the physical plane and their own, and will be expelled from the physical plane by destroying the mirrors from which they emerge. - 72; - 381 Ice Demons have been encountered in wintry conditions, Wood Demons have been found in forests, - 365 Demons of debased substances, such as muck, have also been found in environments rich in their own properties. - 346 So, possibly Demons avail of climates congenial to their particular substance or element to sustain corporeality in the physical world. The text states specifically that the Snake Demons fought on the side of Chaos during the first battle. - p.55/?? The outcome of this conflict was the defeat of their masters, the Dark Gods, who were ultimately banished to the Void, with the Snake Demons fleeing to the outer planes and settling in what became known as possibly the worst of all possible worlds - The Pit. - p.158/?? The Snake Demons are described as demigods - p.55/?? and as such probably have some power to create creatures, but whether or not any of the other demons actually owe their creation to the Snake Demons is unknown. Some Demonic creatures, such as Demonspawn, are often the souls of evil human cultists who worshipped the Demons, and received the dubious reward of being transformed into such creatures themselves after their deaths. - p.29, p.36 (stats & illustrated) Some particularly evil and loyal mortal servants of the Demons may be transformed into powerful Demons; Zanbar Bone was transformed into a Demon of great power before his return to Titan. The Port of Peril - p. 241 Demonic Order and Society Hierarchy There are seven levels to the Pit's hierarchy, but the actual Demons found in the Pit are divided into three groups. The other four groups are composed of undead and servants. "Primus" is the smallest group - within it sit the three Snake Demons and four Night Demons. These seven are collectively known as the Demon Princes. The group immediately below the seven Princes is labelled "Secundus", and it is here the legions of the damned begin. Secundus consists of the greater Demons - the likes of Plague, Rust, Storm and Venom demons can be found on this tier. The level below Secundus is "Tertius", consisting of the lesser Demons. Among the denizens of this circle can be found the Nanka, Hell and Mirror Demons. - p.163/?? Below this are the levels of "Quartus" and "Quintus" - respectively composed of the greater and lesser undead. Thus ends the infernal legions, and begins the bottom two tiers - "Sextus", composed of brainless clones, who occupy a menial position as workers, and the lowest tier, "Septimus", in which the formless, unregarded Demonspawn languish. In addition, the Demons also have creatures bound in service to them who dwell upon the physical plane, such as the quasi-insectoid Ishkarim - 229 and Accursed. - 202 Moreover, it is worth noting that a huge number of Demons have not been assigned any rank in Fighting Fantasy text. Indeed, there may well even be reason to doubt that all creatures referred to as "Demons" are in fact inhabitants of the Pit. Codes and Customs The demonic hierarchy is attended by a stringent code of etiquette. This strange code seems to concern itself with the proper gestures and greetings between those on differing levels of the hierarchy. It is considered a grievous insult to fail to observe these rules, and the Demon bearing the brunt of the insult is well within its rights to tear the offender to pieces. - p.162/?? How this bizarre etiquette developed is unclear. Possibly the greater Demons decided to enforce it as a mark of their own superiority and to consolidate their power over their inferiors, but it could also be a matter of practicality - the code may establish some order among the creatures, thus restraining them from furiously slashing, burning and cursing each other to bits. Demons who violate the codes of the Pit may be punished in various ways. For instance, a Greater Demon found guilty of being too nice may be brought before its fellows before the Wheel of Destiny on the Plane of Pain, and reincarnated as a Demonspawn galley slave on a ship in the Pit. Although the demonic etiquette seems to remain constant, any equilibrium of power established among equals at the apex of the demonic hierarchy is quite fragile. The three Snake Demons and the four Night Demons all hold the highest title of "Demon Prince", though it is the Snake Demons who are the rulers, while the Night Demons act as their generals. - p.158/??, 163/?? None of the princes sit idle atop the Pit's social structure, but are rather continually squabbling and vying for power with each other. Currently it is said that Sith has the upper hand, and indeed she has the allegiance of two Night Demons - Relem and Vradna - but this has not diminished the ambitions of her rivals, who no doubt only covet their own ascendancy with renewed vigour. Their much-sought hegemony may come to pass, as Sith's own followers, the Caarth, seem to be losing ground to Ishtra and Myurr's Lizard Men, and Sith's lieutenants, Relem and Vradna, are increasingly warring between themselves rather than against the armies of her rivals. The Feast and the Wild Hunt The Pit bears witness to more demonic customs than a simple code of conduct. There are depraved, blood-letting banquets in which the Demon Princes and those lesser Demons who are in good graces with their masters congregate to feast upon the dead, dying and undead. Giblets, viscera and thousands of bodies in various states of death and distress are strewn across this abattoir as the Demons revel in their dark delights - ripping, chewing and in some cases chasing their dinner. Over-enthusiastic dinner guests may well dine on each other. - p.159/?? Amid this charnel spectacle can also be found several forms of what the Demons regard as entertainment. Torturers please their spectators, Demonspawn comically and grotesquely juggle limbs and bawdy ballads are sung. All of this general turpitude appeals to the guests, not least the Princes, who, as the festivities continue, will eventually find themselves knee deep in blood and slime, their senses gratified by the howls of the dying and the guttural noises of others engorging themselves on whatever has roused their appetite. A second form of entertainment is the hunt, an excursion which conveys the Demon Princes and their servants to the earthly plane itself. These hunts take place nocturnally, in the middle of the Winter months. Acompanied by Hellhounds, capable of sniffing out living blood, the Princes and their minions ride out on undead steeds, seeking the vulnerable and the isolated from whom they claim souls to bolster their strength. - p.160/?? Laws Governing Demons Demonic Habitat The Pit is a noisome, repulsive place to probably all but its inhabitants. The Demons, while apparently in their element in the Pit, can have difficulty manifesting themselves on other planes. Sometimes it can take days to fully manifest, - 375 and Snake Demons in particular require a magical gem to restrain the elemental forces that would, if left unchecked, forcefully expel the monster and return it to its own domain. - p.282/?? Perhaps because of these difficulties, the demonic forces of the Pit have been seen attempting to terraform Titan, twisting the land into a grim mirror image of their home. However, accomplishing this requires potent artefacts, such as the Death-Stone, which will taint its environs with the necessary Land-Blight to prepare the way for demonic conquest of the physical world. - 323 Demonic Essence Each demon has what is termed "Essence". This Essence shows the link between the "soul" of a Demon, and the Demonic Planes from which it draws all of its power. Demons of Doom, pp. 13-4 The lowly Demonspawn have little Essence, while the Demon Princes have an enormous amount. In game terms, this means that all Demons have at least one point of Essence. High ranking Demons have 12 points of Demonic Essence; it is likely the Demon Princes have an even higher amount. If a Demon is able to grow in power, then its amount of Demonic Essence will also increase. In practical terms, an increase in Essence will allow the Demon to manifest in a more powerful form. It is crucial to note that there is a difference between a Demon's "physical form" and a Demon's soul. A Demon's physical form is made of physical matter that can be injured and killed. And if a Demon's physical form is killed (this usually happens on the Earthly Plane, when the Demon is in conflict with the forces of Good) its soul will return to the Pit. Here the Demon can assume a new physical form by spending a point of Essence, although the Demon will have no choice over the type of physical form it assumes. Should a Demon's physical form be destroyed when it has only one point of Essence, however, the Demon's soul will be cast into the lowest plane of the Pit, and it cannot assume another physical form for millennia. When a Demon gains an increase in Essence, its old physical form disintegrates and it assumes a new, stronger form, although again, a Demon cannot influence the type of new form it assumes. For example, when a Demon who previously manifested itself as a lowly Maze Fiend, (which has 1 point of Essence) gains a second point of Essence, the Maze Fiend form disintegrates, and the Demon's form transforms into a more powerful type with 2 points of Essence, such as a Hellhound. Should the Demon subsequently gain a third point of Essence, the Hellhound form would change into an even stronger type of Demon, such as an Ishkarim. Should the Ishkarim form be killed while on the Earthly Plane, the Demon's soul would return to the Pit. The Demon could then spend a point of Essence as to create a new physical form with 2 points of Essence, such as Hellhound or a Demon Bat. Vulnerabilities Quite often demons can only be harmed by magical weapons and spells, but this is not always the case. Anything consecrated to the service of a Holy Power is usually anathema to them. However, they can sometimes also be vulnerable to their own dark magic and artefacts. Demon Elementals Elementals, especially Chaotic ones, are similar in principle to Demons. They occupy their own planes of existence (the elemental planes in fact abut the four corners of the demonic ones), - p.154/?? they can be summoned and commanded, and they are considered magical. This similarity has led to chaotic elementals being referred to as "Demon" elementals. - 335 Worship of Demons The Demon Princes are widely worshipped on the Earthly Plane by Evil races such as Orcs, Lizard Men and Caarth. Sith is the chief deity of the Caarth, and the creatures are devoted to her service. The Lizard Men of Allansia have an enormous temple-monastery to Ishtra near their capital city, Silur Cha. , p. 90-2. Ishtra also has numerous non-human cultists worshipping him in Northern Khul. - para 201, 212 The Dark Elves of Allansia worship Myurr, and the King and chief Princess of the Dark Elven race are his Acolytes. , p. 96 Demons are also worshipped by certain depraved humans, who form secretive "Demon Cults" to carry out their forbidden activities, undermining the forces of Good from within. Zanbar Bone's parents were members of a cult serving the Demon Princes. The Port of Peril - para 241 Shareella the Snow Witch formed another such group, where the cultists were devoted to an Ice Demon. , para 370. A particularly Evil Human magic-user may become a Demonologist, devoted to summoning and controlling Demons. Demons of Doom, pp. 25-8 Zeverin of the Icefinger Mountains was a Demonologist, - para 321 as was Shanzikuul of Kabesh. - paraa 187, 209 Demon worship and Demonologist Magic are regarded with horror by Lawful societies. In most human nations, those suspected by the authorities of being a member of a Demon Cult, or of practicing Demonologist Magic, are automatically arrested. If found guilty of such crimes, perpetrators are punished with life imprisonment or execution. Although Demons will tempt humans into their services with offers of great wealth, pleasure and power, they usually despise the humans in a Demon Cult; one such Demon is reported to have turned his human worshippers into the Spider-Men on a "sadistic whim". - pp. 286-7 Further Information *Demons do not actually need to eat. - p.156/?? *In the entire ''Sorcery! series, only one actual Demon is encountered. *In literature, it is not uncommon to see an entity somehow bound in service to a Human, who commands the creature by virtue of possessing at item, possibly magical. This entity is usually some form of Demon. Similar instances are seen in Fighting Fantasy include the Demon of the Ring and Izkhao (who may or may not actually be a Demon).. See Also References Category:Demons Category:Minor Spirits and Lesser Demons Category:Beyond the Pit Entries Category:Advanced Fighting Fantasy Entries Category:Rough Guide to the Pit Entries